World Cup 2026: Why Cristiano Ronaldo Hasn’t Played on U.S. Soil in 4,337 Days

More than a decade has passed since Cristiano Ronaldo last played a football match in the United States.

That is set to change on Wednesday afternoon in Houston, Texas, when Portugal open their World Cup campaign against DR Congo at the NRG Stadium. Ronaldo, 41, is arguably the most famous footballer on the planet and is likely playing in what could be his final World Cup — though with the 2030 tournament scheduled to be held in Spain, Morocco, and Portugal, assumptions about Ronaldo’s retirement have a habit of being premature.

Despite his global commercial appeal and iconic status, the Portugal captain has not played a game on American soil since 2 August 2014 — with either his national team, Real Madrid, Juventus, Manchester United, or current club Al Nassr. That is 4,337 days and counting.

When Did Ronaldo Last Play in the United States?

The last time Ronaldo appeared in a match on U.S. soil was an International Champions Cup tie on 2 August 2014, when his Real Madrid side lost 3-1 to his former club Manchester United.

Ronaldo started on the bench but came on as a second-half substitute.

The game was played at Michigan Stadium in front of a crowd of 109,318 — a figure that remains the largest single-game attendance in United States history.

In the time since that match, Ronaldo has played for Real Madrid, Juventus, Manchester United, and Al Nassr at club level, and represented Portugal at multiple European Championships and World Cups — all without setting foot on American soil in a competitive or pre-season context.

Portugal beat the USA 2-0 in a friendly in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium in March, but Ronaldo was again absent — left out of Roberto Martínez’s squad for both that game and a subsequent match against Mexico in Mexico City. Al Nassr head coach Jorge Jesus said Ronaldo had travelled to Spain to undergo treatment for a hamstring injury.

The White House Visit

Ronaldo has visited the United States since 2014 — most notably when he attended a black-tie dinner at the White House in November alongside U.S. President Donald Trump, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, and FIFA president Gianni Infantino, among other business leaders.

President Trump name-checked Ronaldo during his opening remarks: “My son is a big fan of Ronaldo — wherever Ronaldo is here. And Barron got to meet him, and I think he respects his father a little bit more now, just the fact that I introduced you.”

But attending events is not the same as playing football. The pitch at the NRG Stadium on Wednesday will be the first time Ronaldo has been involved in a match on American soil in nearly 12 years.

The Las Vegas Allegation: The Full Background

To understand Ronaldo’s complicated relationship with the United States, it is necessary to revisit events that began in the summer of 2009.

Weeks before his transfer from Manchester United to Real Madrid, Ronaldo — then 24 — visited Las Vegas with his brother-in-law and cousin. They were staying in a suite at the Palms Place Hotel when, on the evening of 12 June 2009, Ronaldo met a former schoolteacher named Kathryn Mayorga at a nightclub called Rain.

Mayorga, then 25 and working as a model, alleged that she and a friend were invited back to Ronaldo’s hotel suite, where she claimed she was raped by him in a bedroom — allegations Ronaldo has always strenuously denied.

When Mayorga went to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department the following day, she decided against naming Ronaldo or identifying the location in her complaint.

In January 2010, Mayorga reached an out-of-court settlement with Ronaldo’s lawyers — Ronaldo was not present during mediation — receiving $375,000 in exchange for agreeing never to go public with the accusations, with the settlement explicitly not constituting an admission of guilt.

What Happened Next

In 2017, Mayorga hired a new legal team and the allegation became public. The Las Vegas Police reopened the case and issued a warrant for a DNA sample from Ronaldo in January. His legal team described this as “a very standard request.” Six months later, it was determined that he would not face charges of sexual assault.

Mayorga and her team continued to pursue Ronaldo for civil damages. In October 2018, Ronaldo posted a statement reading: “I firmly deny the accusations being issued against me. Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in. Keen as I may be to clear my name, I refuse to feed the media spectacle created by people seeking to promote themselves at my expense.”

The Current Status

The civil case is no longer active. In June 2022, U.S. District Judge Jennifer Dorsey permanently dismissed it, stating that Mayorga’s lawyer, Leslie Mark Stovall, had harmed Ronaldo by acting in “bad faith” and by using “purloined” confidential documents.

A federal appeals court dismissed Mayorga’s subsequent appeal. Stovall was ordered to pay Ronaldo more than $330,000 in legal fees.

The Suspension Drama: How Ronaldo Almost Missed the Opener

Ronaldo is only eligible to play in Portugal’s World Cup opener because of a specific decision by FIFA’s disciplinary committee regarding a suspension.

He was sent off on 13 November 2025 during Portugal’s penultimate World Cup qualifier against the Republic of Ireland, for swinging an elbow at defender Dara O’Shea in an off-the-ball incident. He was initially shown a yellow card, but the decision was upgraded to a red following a VAR pitch-side review.

The FIFA committee extended his automatic one-game ban to three matches — but suspended the final two “under a one-year probation period”. This means Ronaldo avoids missing additional fixtures provided he does not “commit another infringement of a similar nature” within 12 months.

Had the committee not suspended those final two games, Ronaldo could have missed Portugal’s World Cup opener against DR Congo entirely.

Portugal’s Group and Ronaldo’s Schedule in the U.S.

Portugal are considered overwhelming favourites to advance from Group K, with a 96% chance of reaching the round of 32 according to The Athletic’s simulator.

If Portugal win the group, they face a third-place team from Groups D, E, I, J, or L in the first knockout game in Kansas City on 3 July. A second-place finish sends them to face the Group L runner-up in Toronto on 2 July. A third-place qualification route would mean meeting the Group L winner in Atlanta.

Houston hosts the first two group games — meaning Ronaldo could play twice in the same American city before the tournament moves on.

A Complicated but Inevitable Return

Ronaldo’s return to U.S. soil carries layers of history, legal complexity, and the kind of global attention that follows him everywhere. The Las Vegas case is closed. The suspension has been managed. The hamstring concern from March has been resolved.

At 41, he is the oldest outfield player likely to feature at this World Cup. His record for Portugal remains extraordinary — a record 57 goals in international appearances at European Championships and World Cups. He needs just one more World Cup goal to match the all-time record of 13 held by Just Fontaine as France’s leading scorer at the tournament.

Wednesday in Houston will be the simplest description of all: Cristiano Ronaldo playing football in the United States for the first time in 4,337 days.

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